Today is moving day for my in-laws. Josh is off all week and will be helping them move until we leave for our romantic getaway to Charleston on Thursday! 🙂

The babies, Ellie and Clara, are doing very well. Ellie (the tiniest one) was rushed into surgery Christmas morning when her doctors discovered her belly was filling with air. They found a hole in her GI tract and had to remove a portion of her intestines. She will now have an ostomy bag and her intestines on the outside of her tiny body for the next several months until she heals and can have another surgery to put everything back where it belongs. She is a fighter and is doing quite well. Thankfully, the wonderful doctors at University hospital arranged to have Clara moved to the Children’s Hospital NICU so she could be with her sister. Erin and Eric seem to be taking everything in stride, continually relying on strength and peace that only the Lord can give. Their testimony through all of this has been incredible and I love hearing them testify to the nurses and doctors about their BIG GOD who saved and healed their tiny babies.

Christmas was wonderful and relaxing and enjoyable and precious. Compared to past years, Christmas was small this year. That is how we requested it. We got each of the boys one thing. Joshua got an Erector Set, Jesse got a child-sized guitar (which he has been playing for the last 72 hours straight!), and Owen got the TAG reading system and the books that teach him all of the short vowel sounds. I was practical with my wish list this year.

Canisters for my flour, sugar, and coffee.

A spice rack.

A cast iron skillet. So long toxic teflon!

The book, The Conscious Kitchen, which I devoured within a few hours on Christmas day.

And the book, The Doctors’ 5-Minute Health Fixes.

You can go ahead and write me off as a tree hugger if you’d like, but really I’ve been making many of my household and health-related changes for financial reasons as well as for the health of my family, not so much for the sake of “going green”.

I would highly recommend The Conscious Kitchen. Here are just a few of the topics discussed:

*which fruits and veggies are most important to buy organically due to highest concentrations of pesticides

*why storing and re-warming our food in plastic is horrible for our health

*why we should be cooking with cast-iron and stainless steel while removing all teflon-coated bake/cookware from our kitchens

*cleaning products in our home

*how to better use what we already have

I’ve already gone through the book a second time with a highlighter, pen, and paper so I could make note of some of the things I’d like to change first.

I got rid of all my teflon and plastic storage containers and replaced them with glass pyrex containers. I’ve decided to forgo paper towels for a month to see how we can survive without them. Instead of paper towels, I am now keeping a stack of old wash cloths under the kitchen sink.

On the food side, we are going to experiment in the month of January (you can try just about anything when you know there is an end date). Here are the changes for January:

*no boxed snacks (granola bars, cereal bars, crackers, etc)
*no white sugar (instead we’ll use honey and honey granules from our bread co-op to sweeten things like yogurt and oatmeal)
*organic, free-range eggs
*organic, free-range, whole chickens (making sure to use the entire chicken and not waste anything. I will make stock with the bones when we’re finished with the meat.)
*fruits, veggies, and cheese sticks for snacks instead of empty carbs. (google “the dirty dozen”, a list compiled of the twelve non-organic produce items with the highest amount of pesticide residue…and “the clean fifteen”, the top 15 non-organic produce items with the least amount of pesticide findings…very interesting!)
*more water. We’re pretty good about drinking water. It is usually the boys’ first choice. We never have soda in the house and rarely even have juice. I will not be making any sweet tea in January (that’ll be a tough one!)
*we are going to try VERY hard to go the ENTIRE month of January without a single item of fast food. This will by far be the biggest part of the challenge for us. A $1 sweet tea, a cup of Starbucks on a stressful day, or a quick $1 cheeseburger for 3 hungry boys while running errands will be tough to give up…but I know we can do it…and will save a lot of cash in the process!

All in all, the two books I received really go hand-in-hand in many ways. Much of what the Doctors’ book recommends is simply reiteration of what I read in The Conscious Kitchen, even about the plastic and teflon items. There are also some really good recommendations in the Doctors’ book for small things that can make a big difference in your health. Read it! 🙂 They’re both easy reads that you could pick up before bed for thirty minutes at a time.

I’ll let you know how it goes as we begin in the next seven to ten days.

~audrey

Introducing:

Elizabeth Hope (Ellie)- 2lbs. 6oz.

Clara Bet- 3lbs. 8oz.

So far the babies are doing wonderfully. Clara is on a little bit of oxygen and Ellie has shocked everyone and is doing fabulous. Please keep praying. They won’t be out of the woods for several weeks.

Praise God for two tiny Christmas miracles!

I’m going to see Erin this afternoon so I’ll update again tomorrow.

Merry Christmas!!

~audrey

I have an urgent and ongoing prayer request for you.

I met my friend Erin when we were three years old. The military separated us a few times, but we were reunited once again in 8th grade when my dad finished up with the army and we settled back in Georgia. Since then we were in each others’ weddings, thrown each other at least six showers, made many road trips to see our friend Mary in Atlanta and been a shoulder to cry on in times of loss.

Erin and her husband Eric have one child. Eve is two years old. After Eve, they got pregnant twice; losing the first baby around 17 weeks and the second baby around 9 weeks. The losses were devastating but their faith was never shaken. Erin found out she has a rare blood disorder that would make carrying a baby to full term very difficult. Finally she got pregnant for a third time. Twin girls.

This pregnancy has been ANYTHING but a walk in the park. At 18 weeks it looked as if Ellie (also known as Baby B) would not make it through the weekend. She was in congestive heart failure and at one point had a heart rate close to 300bpm. MIRACULOUSLY, in the middle of Bible study one morning as I was reading over and over Ephesians 3:20: He is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we could ask or think, according to the power that works in us. I received a text from Erin:

ELLIE IS HEALED!! NO MORE ATRIAL FLUTTERS!! HER HEART RATE IS STEADY IN THE 150’S AND NO ABNORMALITIES CAN BE FOUND!! PRAISE GOD! HE IS FAITHFUL!

Then there were troubling signs for Clara (Baby A). There were several cysts found on her brain. Cysts that could point to cystic fibrosis or downs syndrome. Once again her warriors prayed and interceded on behalf of little Clara. At 26 weeks there was an ultrasound that left the sonographer speechless.

Um, I can’t find any cycsts. Anywhere. I can’t explain it.

Erin and Eric happily explained for her! They serve a mighty God who chose to heal both of her precious, fragile babies.

But the fight is not yet over for Erin, Eric, Clara, and Ellie. Due to some cord complications, the babies will be delivered tomorrow morning, Christmas Eve, via c-section. Erin is 31 weeks. The babies weigh between 2 and 3 pounds each.

We are all trusting God for yet another miracle! Another CHRISTMAS miracle. Please pray for the Lairsey family over the next several weeks as their world changes forever and their tiny miracles put up a hard fight for life.

Bless you,
audrey

I’ve just gotten to the place again recently where I’ve been making much better food choices, we got a Total Gym for Christmas, and we moved the treadmill inside as well so we can start working out more often. It is very much a mental battle for me. I love cooking and I enjoy food, I have used food as a “reward” for the last year or two, like when the kids are in bed and we’re winding down for the night Josh may go get us a snack of some sort.

It’s been a mental preparation for sure. So imagine how I felt when my mother suggested, over our Christmas weekend, that I ought to look into Lap Band surgery! Yes, I am overweight. No, I do not like it. Yes, I want to have more children and prefer that I not be this fat when I get pregnant again. But I do NOT qualify for Lap Band surgery. Then she texts me after we got back home and said that the FDA has approved the surgery for people with a BMI of 35 or more and insurance will cover it. The new, reduced weight will take affect in a few months. Regardless, I still don’t qualify. I am not that fat.

I know that my mother loves me and would love me no less if I remain at this weight forever. I know that her main concern truly is health issues particularly since she’s a nurse. But she’s been critical of my weight for almost five years now and enough is enough. You can’t shame someone into losing weight. If that were the case, most of America would no longer be obese.

I’ve always wondered why I tend to be so critical of my children, particularly my first born, but now I can see clearly where I get it from. I am the first born and my parents have always been hyper critical toward me. I guess I’ve always let it roll off my back for the most part.

We really do want to try to get pregnant in the spring and I certainly would love to be down 30 or 40 pounds by then. But if that doesn’t happen; if I don’t lose a single pound, I’m not going to let that determine whether or not I have more children. My life must go on.

I am still me under this extra ‘winter coat’, but when your own mother suggests bariatric surgery it certainly makes a girl feel like there’s a little more weight placed on outward appearance than one prefers to confess.

I’ve always dreamed of going a few months without seeing my mom, totally transforming my body, and then watching the look on her face when she opens the door to let me in.

~audrey

Facebook is doing something very cool right now. They’re creating a collage of your status updates from 2010. Reading over mine made me laugh out loud and realize just how much I do love my life; all the ups, downs, and inside outs. 🙂

~audrey

Christmas gifts make them do a happy dance.

On your mark…get set…

Joshua has had this spot on his forehead for over a week. The nurse thinks it’s a spider bite. Going to the doctor this afternoon.

Jesse with my daddy.

I have to remind myself daily that this kid is only three.

Owen and Aunt Laura with hundreds of tiny LEGOS.

My “little” brother. Nice bed head! 🙂

Funny how LEGOS turn grown men into kids again. 🙂 Joshua and Daddy.

My kind of LEGO set; even the space police have coffee cups!

~audrey

Right now I’m sitting in my parents’ bonus room as the kids watch Shrek with Grandpa. It’s been a relaxing trip, which is not always the case. This morning I had to run out to pick up some last minute stocking stuffers for my mom. Greenwood has the tiniest mall with very limited options, but thankfully they do have a Bath and Body Works which was a great stop for stocking stuffers.

Greenwood has wonderful mom and pop shops so my brother usually gets his vehicles serviced while they’re here. My brother and sister-in-law were napping when it was time to pick up his car, so I went with my dad. I usually drive with my gloves on because we don’t have heat in the van. I don’t know what is wrong with it, but it simply hasn’t been a priority; the kids and I just bundle up and get where we need to go. This morning was particularly cold (36 degrees to be exact) so when my dad and I got in the van to pick up my brother’s car, we could see our breath!

I dropped Dad off at the shop and headed back to their house. About a mile down the road, my dad called me and asked me to come back to the shop. When I got there he said he had spoken to the owner, described what was wrong with the van, and wanted me to leave it for the day.

A few hours later the owner called and spoke to my dad. All I heard was, “Sure, go ahead and take care of that.”

Long story short, my dad surprised us and is having our van serviced while we’re here. The radiator and thermostat will be replaced and our van should run (and heat) as good as new. This is great news for two Dave Ramsey students who are about to pay off said vehicle!!! Praise God!!

I’ve taken loads of pictures that I will edit and post as soon as we get home.

~audrey

After a week of being cooped up inside from rain and frigid temps.

Desperate times call for desperate measures.

They loved it! 🙂

~audrey

I told my hubby that all I wanted for Christmas was a redesign. 🙂 Josh is a graphic designer. He develops and designs websites for a living, so a redesign isn’t too much to ask, is it?

I really like the blogs that look a little like a scrapbook page. I want the flexibility of being able to change the pictures in my title banner and I definitely want something a little more fresh and bright. As much as I love the monochromatic blues and the current design, I’m ready for a fresh new face for the new year.

What I need your help with is a new name. I originally started this blog for my organizing business, but I no longer do that as a profession. This is now where I hang my laundry, confess my shortcomings, and share our hilarity.

Here are a few ideas. Please tell me what you think or if you have any other suggestions:

Virtuous Ventures

Audrey’s Aerie (aerie means ‘nest’)

Confessions of a Supermom (because we’re all supermoms to someone)

My web address will stay the same, I’d just like to rename my blog.

Thank you in advance for your help!

~audrey

This old saying is usually used to describe something easy or simple. But you’d rethink ever using it again after watching the Bailey boys at McDonald’s yesterday afternoon! Ashley had given Ben a sucker and Drew decided he wanted it. This is how it went down…

Ben was NOT going down without a fight!

And this is how it ended…sort of.

The picture I did not capture was about ten minutes later when Drew had finished his sucker, went after poor Ben’s again and succeeded!

We had a great time letting the kids play at McDonald’s together. It’s been too cold and windy for Ashley and me the babies to be outside at the park, so this was the second time we met at McDonald’s to let the kids play and run off some steam. Is it just me or do they seem to have MORE energy in the winter months??

Happy Thursday!

~audrey